


Phantom Pain

by itai



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: M/M, MAJOR SPOILER WARNING, i love dying, my first contribution to the fandom and it's angst /knee slap
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-27
Updated: 2017-01-27
Packaged: 2018-09-20 03:51:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9474395
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/itai/pseuds/itai
Summary: "King of tremendous majesty,who freely saves,save me, source of mercy."





	

**Author's Note:**

> inspired by the song One Love by Marianas Trench and me thinking "what if Ignis lost more than his sight after the fight with Leviathan?"  
> i was originally going to write fluff i swear  
> btw i didn't know wat to put for the summary so i just inserted the english translation from a latin part of the song "city of the dead" by eurielle (which is a really good song btw 10/10 would listen all the time)

            Noctis had been able to deal with everything life threw at him: the destruction of his hometown, his father’s death, and even the passing of his closest friend since childhood—Luna. It was difficult, but he was able to deal. However, he wasn’t able to deal with what happened after Leviathan knocked him unconscious.

“Where is he?”

Prompto couldn’t even look at Noctis, the poor boy had his arms wrapped around himself to try and stop the trembling. Only Gladiolus was able to walk forward and tell him the cold truth:

“Ignis didn’t make it.”

Noctis just stared at him with eyes wide in disbelief. “What do you mean? That doesn’t—“

“He got blinded by some of the imperial troops and before I could get to him in time—“Gladiolus shut his eyes and averted Noctis’ gaze, his hands clenched into fists, “he stumbled and fell off the ledge.” A three-hundred foot drop into the roaring waves. Instant death.

Death. Ignis was dead.

Noctis couldn’t—didn’t want to process it. He lunged at his friend, blinded by anger and confusion, “YOU LET HIM DIE! YOU LET HIM DIE!”

“Noctis stop!” Prompto grabbed his friend’s arm to try and halt his actions, but Noctis hit him aside and delivered a punch against Gladiolus’ jawline, and then another, and another; until his hands were stinging and his friend’s face was red and purple. Prompto abruptly stopped Noctis by colliding his shoulder with a boot, and the prince fell to the floor crying out in pain.

“WE AREN’T YOUR ENEMIES, NOCT!”

Noctis barely heard the other over his screaming and crying both from the pain in his shoulder and the one in his heart. It felt like someone had torn it from between his lungs and pierced it with a shard of ice. Prompto’s eyes watered as he watched his best friend come completely undone, and he pressed his arm against his eyes while ugly sobs racked his body. Gladiolus continued lying on the floor, entire face aching but the tears streamed down his face as he gazed up at the darkened clouds which seemed to be crying with them.

 

            Noctis had no recollection of how he managed to fall asleep that night, though it was probably from the exhaustion of crying so much since his pillow was thoroughly soaked even when he awoke. His eyes stung, and his entire body was sore and covered in bandages and gauze. Sitting up, Noctis ran his fingers through his hair that was turning frail at the edges. His mind was fuzzy and nothing had made sense for the past 7 hours.

“I’m surprised to see you up by yourself.”

Noctis jerked his head up at the voice that caused his heart to stop for a split second. He was there. He was really there—in that vertically stripped shirt and overalls and everything.

“And so early in the morning too.” Ignis gave a small smile as he stood next to the other’s bed with arms crossed.

Noctis flipped the covers off and tumbled off the bed in a mess of limbs, not caring about anything except the man in front of him right then.

“Ig—“Noctis rushed forward, arms open towards Ignis. His eyes widened when the man vanished right in front of him, causing Noctis to crash into the lamp before he could stop fast enough. Prompto and Gladiolus bolted into the room on high alert, and rushed over to Noctis who was face-down beside the fallen lamp.

“Noct? Noct!” Prompto shook the prince’s shoulder, and was about to ask what happened until he heard the other’s muffled crying from the floor. He and Gladiolus exchanged looks before one of them stood up and left the room while the other stayed and rubbed slow circles against Noctis’ back.

 

            They were a day behind schedule. Noctis followed his friends onboard the train and took the seat closest to the window while Prompto and Gladiolus seated themselves in a booth across from him. Noctis could tell that his friends were trying their best to help, since this wasn’t easy for any of them, but without Ignis the gang felt incomplete. It felt wrong.

Noctis tried to focus his attention on the moving background outside the train. His friends had agreed to make a short stop at Tenebrae as a way of showing respect for Luna’s passing. It wouldn’t be long until—

“Feels kind of nostalgic, doesn’t it?”

Again. That voice.

Noctis knew he shouldn’t have looked, but he couldn’t help turning his head and gazing at the older male whose face glowed from the warm sunlight hitting it, and reflecting off his glasses.

“To be going back to a place you’ve known since childhood.”

There was so much Noctis wanted to say, so much he wanted to do. But before Noctis could even open his mouth, Ignis stood up and made his way past the doors of the train car and into the next. Noctis stood up quickly to follow, possibly confusing his two friends, but he didn’t want to lose sight of Ignis. The last time he did…

The train car door opened revealing the bar, and Noctis saw Ignis just as he went through the next set of doors. “Ignis!” Noctis called desperately, and dashed after the other, the automatic doors never being fast enough for him as he squeezed through them and into the next car. He was always one step behind Ignis, always just a bit too late. Then, as the doors to the storage cart opened, Noctis saw Ignis standing in the middle with his back facing him. Taking a tentative step forward, Noctis could feel his heart hammering away in his chest. He swallowed and said in a raspy voice, “Ig…Ignis…You promised. You promised me you’ll always stay by my side and be there for me.”

“…Noct.” Ignis’s voice sounded heavy, and the fact that the other wasn’t turning around to look at him just made Noctis feel angry.

“Why did you go alone?! You should have been there! You should have been by my side when Luna summoned Leviathan and all hell broke loose. I needed you back there, Ignis! You couldn’t fend for yourself against that many Imperials, plus you let Luna die!” All the words leaving Noctis’ lips burned as they came out, and Noctis knew he probably sounded like a madman screaming by himself in a storage cart, but if this was Ignis’ spirit coming back to fuck with him, he wanted the other to know exactly how he was feeling.

When Noctis finally stopped yelling, he stared at Ignis’ back while breathing raggedly. Finally, just as Noctis was about to grab the other by the shoulder and spin him around, Ignis gazed back at Noctis wearing shades and with a large scar over his right eye.

“I’m sorry.”

Noctis grabbed for the other just as he vanished. The young prince fell to his knees trembling and biting back sobs which were trapped in his chest. Everything he had said was a lie. The truth was: it was all Noctis’ fault.

 

            When Noctis came back, Prompto and Gladiolus immediately swarmed him, “are you alright? What happened?” They both asked, along with a bunch of similar questions.

Noctis simply nodded and brushed past them in order to return to his seat. He put his hands together and rested them on the table while resuming to gazing outside, and he could tell Ignis had returned. A pair of soft hands covered his, and Noctis bit his lower lip to keep from moving. If he moved, or looked at the other, the magic would be over.

“Hey Ignis…?”

“Yes?”

“Do you think that someone’s true love is the only one they’ll ever have?”

Silence.

“Do you think one day I’ll wake up, and you’ll be real? Can I even dare to hope?”

“…Noct.”

“Yeah?”

“Once this is all over, you’ll know the answer.”


End file.
